Random thoughts as the week comes to an end

Ok, haven’t posted in a while, but the thing is…I’ve been swamped! I’ve graduated this past Tuesday and I’ve also been working on my MA thesis. There’s an average of ten books per week still coming in…and being read! In the beginning I thought I had this subject pretty much covered but again, I’ve managed to unearth some things and I still have lots of questions! Oh the joy of research! Anyhow, back to Tuesday... I got my BA, finally! My professor was very proud and complimented me on my motivation and drive. She joked about the times we went on museum excursions, ones that lasted the WHOLE day, and how I would be chipper as ever at the end. Me tired??? Haha! I could never get tired in a museum! Of course, I also thanked her and my other professor for all their encouragement and inspiration. If it wasn’t for Dr. Boers, I’d be studying psychology. Her art classes during my first year were so amazing that I knew I had to follow my heart. The funny thing is, and she mentioned this as well, I’m combining psychology with art in my MA thesis. Dr. Van Marion has also played a big role in my success. She was the one who taught me how to do research and she instilled in me great pride for my university. The other person I thanked was Hans, my wonderful husband, who helped me tremendously by giving me all his support and spoiling me all along the way. I could’ve never gotten this far without him.

After an achievement like this, one is most certainly entitled to a treat or two, no? I’ve just gotten Jewel’s latest: “Goodbye Alice in Wonderland”. What a beautiful album! I just love Jewel because she worked hard to get where she is. Difficult situations as a child meant that she had to grow up fast but in the end everything that happened in her life helped her to get where she is. Her biography, “Chasing Down The Dawn” should also be coming in some time next week. Can’t wait to read more about this inspirational woman.

I’ve always believed that those who are hated are great, so that’s why I’ve ordered my first Rachael Ray book: “Rachael Ray 365: No Repeats--A Year of Deliciously Different Dinners”. I’ve seen a few of her shows and I REALLY like her! She seems down- to- earth and she’s a hoot! So there! I’m a fan! YUM-O!!!!

This weekend I also did a little clothes shopping. Some nice gray pants and a simple black shirt. Necessities you see.

Oh and something fun...I got us tickets to go see the K3 musical, "De Drie Biggetjes" or " The Three Little Piggies". Kirstie is one spoiled girl. This will be her third time seeing K3!

And last but not least…we got one of those beautiful, fancy shmancy Nespresso machines. We’re not big coffee drinkers but we might as well have a GOOD cup when we do have one! It also does cappuccino and café latte. Now I just have to master working it so I don’t have to ask Hans for help all the time!

Well, that’s all I have time for. I have to go give Kirstie a shower and put her in bed! Bye!

A Weekend (In My Life)

I just love our weekends. I think I've said this before, but I am very blessed with a husband who actually loves to shop. Most Saturday mornings are spent in the city, looking around in stores and sometimes really spending more than we should. Ooops! But anyway, there's no therapy like retail therapy, and Hans knows that! I don't really have a lot to feel guilty about if I think about the things we got yesterday though:

-a pair of really cute magenta Ecco shoes for Kirstie
-some black house shoes for Hans
-a pair of silver eighties ankle boots for me
-a K3 dvd for Kirstie
-lunch at the V&D restaurant (yummy!)

(OK, I did get a new coat, some baking things for Kirstie and a few presents for a friend on Friday, but the weekend officially starts on Saturday morning for us, so that doesn't count here does it?)

Yesterday though, I told Hans I wasn't really in the mood to spend a lot of time going in and out of shops (imagine that!). I wanted to come home and spend the WHOLE afternoon baking! Especially now that I am getting back into the student mode and spend my Sundays working on my studies, I NEED to have at least that Saturday to dive into my kitchen and bake!

I blame Nigella of course. In the last issue of Delicious she wrote about how therapeutic it is to work with yeast. As if I needed an excuse! She featured three recipes: the soft white dinner rolls, a blueberry kuchen and some sweet rolls with pistachios and chocolate. Now those sweet rolls had me salivating! I just LOVE sweet bread! In the recipe she says you can use either milk chocolate or pure chocolate. I used pure as I thought the flavor would be more intense. Well, they were delicious, of course. Hans, who is not a fan of sweet bread was asking if we could have some more after dinner and mind you, I really made them HUGE!

After that, I helped Kirstie bake three little cakes in the new tins I bought for her this Friday. She's really getting baking fever these days and even has a mini mixer! The results had her feeling very proud and let me just add that except for the weighing of the ingredients,which by the way, I usually manage to turn into math class, she pretty much did everything herself. Like mother, like daughter I guess!

The perfect afternoon turned into the perfect evening with the sound of George Harrison's music in the background. I didn't want to make a big fuss over dinner so we had pizza and while we ate we discussed who our favorite Beatle was...again. What more could I ask for????

Some sweet rolls for breakfast perhaps?

Wie jarig is trakteert!

The title of this post basically translates to,"he/she who celebrates their birthday, will treat." For their birthday, the Dutch usually bring in some cake to work to share with their co-workers. Children are also expected to bring in a little something for their classmates. Since Kirstie's birthday is during the Christmas vacation, she can usually bring some goodies to school the first week of January. I always try to do something special and the fun part is that we all work on it together. Today the three of us spent the afternoon making "bear" treats. We made little paper teddy bears in primary colors and to them we attached a small bag of gummi bears. I used a Pudsey the bear cookie cutter as a stencil for the bears and I also made chocolate cupcakes in Pudsey cupcake cases. The cupcakes were sampled and they were very yummy! I used the sponge recipe for the old fashioned chocolate cake in Feast, our favorite. We also decorated paper plates to look like bear faces, complete with ears in primary colors. Hope the children like everything tomorrow! We had a lot of fun putting it all together!

PS: Kirstie made a Mr. and Mrs. Bear, which I thougtht were very cute.

Love, and hope for the future

I rang in the new year in a very special way this year. At midnight, I very gently woke up Kirstie so she could witness her first fireworks display. I had told her earlier that I might do that but that she would have to promise to go back to sleep afterwards, which she did without any problems. We all went up to the attic where we could get the best view and Kirstie sat on my lap, enveloped by the red, flannel shawl I wore. I just kept planting big kisses on her little head and thinking how lucky I was. It truly was magical.

I have become so much more of myself and truly a better person since I became a mom. With the birth of Kirstie I finally realized what was important in my life. Suddenly trivial things like pleasing the world became less important. Becoming a mom has pushed me to pursue everything I've ever wanted with a thousand times more conviction than I've ever had. I want to be a role model for my child and I want to let her see that dreams can easily become realities if you just believe in yourself and work hard enough. Most importantly though, I want her to see that good things all begin with love.

Two very special little beings were born in 2006. On Hans' birthday, the 8th of April, my dearest friend Maggie, gave birth to her beautiful little girl, Natalia. I was so proud of this tough cookie. She gave birth underwater, all by herself. Maggie is one of those women that give me hope in the world, a mom who like me, believes that the magic word is "love". A few months later I became an aunt to Arianna, my brother's gorgeous little girl. Nothing makes me smile more than seeing this beautiful child grow, even if from afar. Thanks Jasmine and Bernie for all those gorgeous pictures...keep 'em coming!

I really think these little girls, mine included, are our hope for the future. Sometimes I wonder where they will be twenty years from now. One thing I know for sure is that the love we give them now will make a huge difference in their life which in turn will enable them to make a huge difference in the world. Love IS the answer, and our hope for the future.

Tribute To The Artist

For her birthday, Kirstie got a really nice set of clay with lots of colors and different cut-out forms. She's very much enjoyed playing with it (as have I) and yesterday she made a very cute doggie which I just had to share with you. She even made a bone for her, because it is a girl...and her name is Chelsea.

When we visit museums, I always tell her that if she wants, she can have her own museum one day and she loves the idea. The Kirstie W. Museum, Amsterdam. And here I share with you the first piece of the collection. :)

Chelsea The Dog, With Bone, 2006, Kirstie W., Play-Doh,3.5 inches.